Koeniggraetz 1866 – Battlefield Finds

[Brad Posey]

Great stuff, love the posts!!

How did you identify the plate as Jaeger? Is there an identifying feature?

I guess I asumed it was because the Jaeger monument is nearby and they had a hell of a fight in this part of the Swiepwald. The plate could have been from an Infanty Tschako as well.

Either way it is from an epic 1866 battle and from one of the most interesting parts of the battlefield.


Brad

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[Brad Posey]

Here is an interesting artifact from the 1866 battlefield of Bad Kissingen in Bavaria. Here you can see a fired 13.9 mm (.54 cal.) Bavarian M1858 Podewils expansion bullet that was lodged inside this tree. We used to find a lot of "bullets in wood" on 1865 US Civil War battlefields in North Carolina. The inner core of these type pine trees is hard, heavy and full of pine resin - thus why they preserve so well. I never found one like this with such a nich and big piece of wood before.

[Brad Posey]

Here is a very rare bullet from Bad Kissingen. It is a 13.9 mm Bavarian M1863 explosive bullet for the M1858 Podewils rifle. I have found two of these there as well as another variant of this rare bullet. It is also unusual that I found these because prior to the 1866 war explosive bullets had been outlawed in most of Europe and Bavaria had signed on to this treaty. Technically thee bullets never should have been there, but....they were!

This example was fired, but did not explode, or at least did not explode right leaving the insert still intact. You can see the brass explosive insert in bullet.

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[Brad Posey]

Here is a group of bullets, motsly Prussian von Dryse Zuendnadelgewehr (needle gun) bullets and a really nice Pussian socketed batonet from a Dryse.

Thee are from the 1866 battlefield of Uettingen in Bavaria just west of Wuerzburg.


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[Brad Posey]

Also from Uettingen, more bullets and a Prussian Pikelhaube spike.


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[Brad Posey]

These are from Gerchsheim, just south of Wuerzburg.

This battle was more of an artilery duel betwen the Prussians and the Hessian, Autsrian and other Southern German Confederation units that opposed them.

Here is a noes and partial fuse from an Austrian "Bleimantelgranat" (lead covered shell) and another of a group of mostly Austrian fragments, but there were Baden and I think Nassau shell fragments found at this same place.

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[cameronian]

Nosecone

These are from Gerchsheim, just south of Wuerzburg.

This battle was more of an artilery duel betwen the Prussians and the Hessian, Autsrian and other Southern German Confederation units that opposed them.

Here is a noes and partial fuse from an Austrian "Bleimantelgranat" (lead covered shell) and another of a group of mostly Austrian fragments, but there were Baden and I think Nassau shell fragments found at this same place.

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I think this is a nosecone from an Austrian air burst (schrapnel) shell; the control on the nose is white metal which contrasts with the cast iron body and corresponds with the Austrian design (no air burst conical shells in Prussian arty 1866). TTBOMK the Prussians not the Austrians sheathed their shells in lead, it would work in a breech loader but not in a muzzle loader if you think about. A very interesting series of photos, thank you.

[Brad Posey]

The Prussians had a lead covered shell with a "point detonating fuze" - percussion fuze, The Austrians had a lead alloy covered shell that could be fired with a percussion fuse and I believe also a "time fuze" for airburst action. This is from my own findings on 1859, 1866 and 1870 battlefields as well as looking at artifacts displayed in museums on these battlefields.

[Wild Card]

Very interesting. Thank you for sharing.

[ctcole77]

thx

Reallly cool man, those finds are so good. Great to see you resurrect history.

[cameronian]

Nosecone

The Prussians had a lead covered shell with a "point detonating fuze" - percussion fuze, The Austrians had a lead alloy covered shell that could be fired with a percussion fuse and I believe also a "time fuze" for airburst action. This is from my own findings on 1859, 1866 and 1870 battlefields as well as looking at artifacts displayed in museums on these battlefields.

Hi Brad, the very poor quality, blurred photo I've posted is of the brass/white metal adjustable fuze which screws into the nose of the Austrian schrapnel shell, quite sophisticated with graduated burst distances etched into the control.

Prussian shells were sheathed in lead because they were breech loaded; the lead filled the rifling; the Austrian muzzle loaders were cast iron and loaded into the rifled barrel with a screwing action (clockwise from memory) no no need for sheathing (would make loading, esp into a hot barrel v difficult).

Where you might be getting a bit confused is with the Austrian common shell; the two little nascelles in the nose were covered with very thin aluminium (poss zinc or another easily worked metal) and brazed in place; when the shell was fired the propellant flame melted the foil and ignited the fuze in the nose; when the shell hit a solid object/buried itself, a heavy ball bearing was displaced downwards allowing the main charge to ingnir.
Thanks again for your splendid photos.

Just realised I can't post photos yet, sorry, do you awnt it emailed?

[Brad Posey]

Ok, here is an Austrian shell that was found on the Koeniggraetz battlefield, fragments from this same type of shell I have found at Gerchsheim. In the second photo you will see the Austrian shell display in the Koeniggratetz battlefield museum. As you see the three shells shown here are all "Bleimantel" shells in addition to another in the burlap looking bag and a "canister"' round which is the cylinder filled with balls. The Austrian "Bleimantel" shell is covered with some sort of lead alloy thus why it the ground dug ones look like they are falling apart from ground action. Also, Austrian canister balls were made of a lead alloy because they are much lighter in weight than lead balls of equal size. I have found these at Koeniggraetz and Custoza.

You can see here there are two different types of fuses. Pieces from both these fuse types I have found at Koenniggraetz.

I will post Prussian shells after this.

[Brad Posey]

Here are two Prussian "Bleimantel" shells, both from 1870 battlefields in France. In the second photo you can see the percussion mechanism. Upon impact kinetic energy slammed the brass "anvil" (the barrel looking piece with a small sharp projection I the middle) forward and the sharp projection initiated a fulminate of mercury type substance in the threaded cap that was screwed into the nose of the shell/fuse just before firing. The jet of flame from the fulminate of mercury blew through the hole in the center of the anvil into the shell body initiating the black powder main charge.

[cameronian]

Ok, here is an Austrian shell that was found on the Koeniggraetz battlefield, fragments from this same type of shell I have found at Gerchsheim. In the second photo you will see the Austrian shell display in the Koeniggratetz battlefield museum. As you see the three shells shown here are all "Bleimantel" shells in addition to another in the burlap looking bag and a "canister"' round which is the cylinder filled with balls. The Austrian "Bleimantel" shell is covered with some sort of lead alloy thus why it the ground dug ones look like they are falling apart from ground action. Also, Austrian canister balls were made of a lead alloy because they are much lighter in weight than lead balls of equal size. I have found these at Koeniggraetz and Custoza.

You can see here there are two different types of fuses. Pieces from both these fuse types I have found at Koenniggraetz.

I will post Prussian shells after this.

Nice photos, I've been to the museum at chlum several times. If you're interested in gunnery the small museum on the Kapellenberg at Trutnov is worth a visit. The curator is the regional antiquarian and a real expert in the guns and munitions of the period, Vlasimil Grof, nice guy but no English unfortunately. The photos show 4 and 8pds shells, both common shell and schrapnel (top right) you can clearly see the white metal and brass control on the nose. Never heard Austrian shell as described as Bleimantel, only Prussian but I'll check and get back to you. Nice pics of the Prussian shells, 4 and 6pdr, and a helpful synopsis of the percussion system employed.

[cameronian]

Austrian ordnance 1866

Well after a long interval I've sorted it. The Prussian shells only were sheathed in lead - 'Bleimantel' - the Austrian shells have a Zinc /Tin alloy (1:1 ratio) jacket which allowed it to move up the rifling with the minimum of friction thus increasing muzzle velocity and reducing barrel wear. Austrian canister was comprised of zinc alloy balls, Austrian schrapnel used lead balls.